Town and beach

What’s the best SUV for city living, with a bit of bush-bashing on the weekends. We pit the Nissan X-Trail against the Subaru Forester and Suzuki Grand Vitara.

June 6 2012

Cameron McGavin

The dilemma: Kate is looking for a used compact 4WD but doesn’t know which way to turn.

She wants something that works well around town but has enough off-road ability to handle a bit of beach driving. Safety, fuel economy, reliability and enough boot space for the dog are her other priorities.

What should she be looking at?

The budget: $20,000 to $25,000

The shortlist:

Making an authoritative call on just how much off-road ability Kate is going to need is difficult without knowing the scale of her sand-driving ambitions.

Most light-duty 4WDs are going to be fine for gentle forays on flat, packed sand with easy access. By the same measure, though, it’s easy to envision situations where some extra ground clearance and low-range gearing will make the difference between making it through and getting stuck.

With that in mind, we’ll keep things relatively broad and go for contenders with different levels of ability. Here are three that cover pretty much every potential scenario.

2007-on Nissan X-Trail, from $13,770*

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The X-Trail doesn’t try to be a serious bush-basher but its effective switchable all-wheel-drive system gives it more than enough capability for milder off-road forays.

What’s lost off the tarmac, too, is gained around town. The petrol and diesel drivetrains are flexible and frugal, and it’s comfortable and easy to drive. You also get a child-friendly cabin, brilliantly versatile boot and stability control and curtain airbags on all models.

The Nissan’s four-star ANCAP rating, however, puts it behind Subaru’s Forester on a safety front and the road manners – while on the pace in this group ­– aren’t the sharpest in the compact 4WD domain. Not everyone is going to be a fan of its boxy exterior, either.

The Forester is ostensibly a light-duty 4WD just like the X-Trail but go for a manual naturally-aspirated petrol model and you get something unique ­– low-range gearing.

It’s not enough to make the Sube a serious off-roader, mostly due to ground clearance limitations, but it does give it the ability shrug off a wider array of sandy scenarios than its obvious rivals.

The Forester doesn’t hurt its chances with its roomy cabin, handy boot, five-star ANCAP rating and easygoing performance. Just don’t expect the flashiest looks or the classiest cabin ambience, while strong resale is likely to put all but the sparsely equipped base petrol model out of Kate’s reach.

The Grand Vitara sits at the extreme end of the compact 4WD class. With its good clearance, handy approach/departure angle and low-range gearing it’ll go pretty much anywhere a big heavy-duty 4WD can.

This does bring some downsides relative to more tarmac-orientated rivals. It’s heavier, which impacts on economy, not quite as sharp to drive and the cabin space isn’t remarkable in light of its size.

But that’s all relative. The Suzuki is more than practical enough for most families, far from bad to drive and matches the Nissan’s four-star ANCAP safety. Get a post-2008 update and you also get superior petrol four-cylinder and V6 drivetrains to the original.

The Suzuki has the ability to shrug off the widest array of potential sand-driving scenarios and that makes it the easiest to recommend here. It’s a safe bet, even if it’s not the best compact 4WD around town.

If, however, Kate has less adventurous duties on her horizon then the Nissan and Subaru should be more than capable enough, as well as being that bit better suited to day-to-day urban duties.

Which one? Well, if she can live with a manual gearbox then a dual-range Forester makes an ideal halfway house between serious off-roaders and their more tarmac-orientated brethren.

If she must have an auto, though, any off-road advantage is neutralised and the X-Trail’s superior value, cabin versatility and economy prospects start to look very compelling.

Ultimately, both are worthy choices but for the urban-biased buyer the Nissan has a small edge.

* Values are estimates provided by Glass’s Guide for private sale based on an entry-level model averaging up to 20,000km per annum and in a well-maintained condition relevant to its age.